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Alaskans: State to announce value of 2012 Permanent Fund Dividend

The mercury is shriveling, rains have returned and Cal Worthington is hawking used cars for $95 down, meaning only one thing: Alaskans will soon receive free money -- lots of it -- just for breathing Alaska air.

How much will the 2012 Alaska Permanent Fund Dividend check be worth? Department of Revenue Commissioner Bryan Butcher will announce the value of this year's giveaway Tuesday, Sept. 18, at 11 a.m., according to a press release from the governor's office.

Money for the annual check comes from a sovereign wealth fund set up back in the 1980s, to return some of Alaska's mind-boggling oil wealth back to residents before spendthrift lawmakers or wild-eyed governors bet it all on the "next big boom." The Alaska Permanent Fund is currently worth more than $41 billion.